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EUROPA - PARK
GERMANY, BADE-WURTEMBERG

EUROPA - PARK WE'VE TESTED SILVER STAR

Undoubtedly, the editorial team at infoparks.com is willing to go to great lengths to please its readership. And it is for you, dear readers, that we have tested Silver Star. Let's face it, Silver Star is among the best in roller coasters Europe has to offer. It is yet another reason to visit Europa-Park, the amazing German amusement park just a stone's throw away from Strasbourg. This absolutely fabulous ride, only for the most daring thrill seekers, has been up since the opening of the 2002 season.
Before delving into the matter, a look at some impressive statistics: the foundations for Silver Star are made up of concrete cylinders a meter in diameter that go 15 meters into the ground. All in all, a kilometre has been dug into the earth so as to receive the 5000 tons of concrete needed to support a 2000 ton steel structure. 170 heavy trucks were necessary to transport the materials to the scene of the crime. It is indeed a crime since Mack (the owners of Europa-Park) and Bollinger & Mabillard, the German and Swiss construction companies that built Silver Star respectively, have assassinated gravity.
After eight months of construction, the 73 meter high Silver Star was finally up and running last February. And what of these 73 meters?

LET' GO FOR A RIDE !

EUROPA - PARK As you wait in line for the ride in surroundings designed by Mercedes-Benz-the theme is "sports automobile"-and see the flips and turns of Silver Star in the skies at Europa-Park, you already know you'll pay dearly for your fearlessness. Once you get into the car for 36 passengers (four rows of nine), a chain weighing 10 tons lifts you immediately to the top of the roller-coaster (73 meters above ground, let's not forget). The slope is 40° and so you can imagine the fall...And indeed "fall" is the correct term-of course not technically speaking, (almost draconian measures have been taken to assure the safety of the ride)-but it definitely does feel that way with a 70° declivity at the first change in height. If you remember your trigonometry lessons, a right-angle is 90°...let's just say that at moments like this your notions of geometry are only approximate and you do in fact feel you're going down headfirst. And at the end of this first fall you find yourself five meters above ground, which means you've been screaming for dear life 68 meters of an almost vertical descent. It is precisely at this point where things seem to be calm that Silver Star reaches it's maximum speed: 130km/h (sometimes even 135 km/h) and a G force close to 4. But this is only the beginning. There is no respite for those that have dared challenge Silver Star, the rise and falls come one after another like a string of pearls, totalling eight peaks with various twists and turns added for extra measure.

GRAVITY

EUROPA - PARK The ride lasts 200 seconds. It is often said the shorter the better. That, however, is not the case for this particular ride since even after 1.6 kilometres you are left asking for more. Indeed, the thrill of Silver Star lies not only in its speed and abrupt descents, but also in the unique sensations it provides. It is built in such a way that vibrations and bumps are almost nonexistent. Such smoothness and fluidity at these high speeds is rather remarkable: it's as if you're travelling on cushions of air. The fact that only your thighs are attached, leaving the rest of your legs "free", only adds to the feeling of being at the mercy of the winds. Indeed, one should note that 10% of the ride happens in negative G force (-0.2)...you're weightless! This magic floating feeling is even more extreme at the tail end of the car. And if ever you're tempted to get your very own Silver Star be ready to fork out 12 million euros.


Discover EUROPA - PARK

05/17/2002


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